Disabled cheated of artificial limb donations

Disabled cheated of artificial limb donations

JAKARTA (JP): A group of disabled people accused the Ministry
of Social Services' Jakarta office on Monday of embezzling funds
allocated to procure artificial legs for the handicapped.

Azwardi Ujang, head of Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian
Advocating Committee for the Disabled, said the city office had
asked last month the group to purchase 10 low-quality artificial
limbs for between Rp 1.4 million (US$127.27) and Rp 1.7 million
each.

"Actually the appendages should have been free of charge since
the project was funded by donations from local companies," he
said.

Ujang said the artificial legs were half of a supply of 20
limbs to be given to the disabled under the supervision of the
committee. Those designated to receive the legs had also had been
measured.

"But instead of providing the limbs free of charge, the office
demanded we purchase them."

The office insisted the group pay for the artificial limbs
even though all of the recipients complained that the price was
too high, he said.

An official at PT Indoraya, which produced the artificial
legs, later told Ujang that a standard quality limb retailed for
Rp 1.8 million each.

Ujang explained that when the social services office ordered
the limbs, it quoted a much lower figure than the price for
standard quality limbs on grounds that it also had to cover
administrative and other expenses.

The artificial legs to be given to the recipients cost only Rp
300,000 each, he claimed, saying they had been made of
unrecommended materials like plastic pipe, foam rubber and sheet
iron.

Standard quality limbs are made of fiber plastic, high quality
rubber and steel.

Gatot Bimo, another representative of the committee, said the
case was an example of how the social services office was not
paying attention to the safety and health of the handicapped.

"We feel humiliated because our safety is not being
considered. They're only thinking of how to make more money,"
Gatot said.

He said the group would return all of the limbs to the office
and demand they be provided with standard quality units.

The office could not be reached for comment on Monday. (ind)